New York voters OK private casinos

The referendum alters the state constitution to allow up to seven non-Indian casinos across the state.

A dealer stacks chips March 16, 2012, at Hollywood Slots iin Bangor, Maine. Poker, blackjack, craps and other casino table games became legal in the state in 2012. (Robert F. Bukaty, AP)(Photo: Robert F. Bukaty, AP)

The proposition, which passed overwhelming with 57% of the vote, will mean New York will add up to seven casinos in a state that already has nine racetracks with video-lottery terminals and five Native American casinos.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state has room for more casinos and the new resorts will drive tourism to hard-hit areas of upstate and create jobs. The first four casinos will be built upstate: the Catskills, Southern Tier and Albany area. They will have exclusivity for seven years.

"This vote will keep hundreds of millions of dollars spent each year in neighboring states right here in New York while increasing revenue for local schools, lowering property tax taxes, and bringing proper regulation to the industry," Cuomo said in a statement.

Casino operators already indicated they will seek licenses from the state Gaming Commission, which soon will appoint a committee to start reviewing bids. The law takes effect Jan. 1, then the commission has 90 days to put out requests for proposals.

At least three proposals have been made public for casinos in the Catskills. Tioga Downs and Saratoga Raceway, which are racinos, expect to bid to be full-scale casinos.

“We look forward to seeking a license to bring the same type of full-service destination resort casino to the Catskills that we've created in Connecticut.”

Scott Butera, Foxwoods Resort and Casino

"We look forward to seeking a license to bring the same type of full-service destination resort casino to the Catskills that we've created in Connecticut," President Scott Butera of Foxwoods Resort and Casino said in a statement.

A timeline for casino construction is unclear. Tioga Downs, Saratoga and Monticello Raceway in the Catskills said they could get under way soon because they already have facilities.

Tracks, unions and business groups backed the proposition.

"The passing of the casino ballot referendum is great news for New York State, specifically upstate," said Aaron Hilger, president of the Builders Exchange of Rochester, N.Y. "Four proposed locations in upstate will have the potential to create more than 10,000 good-paying construction jobs."

Casino proponents benefited from out-of-state money, according to New York Board of Elections records.

The national Teamsters union, Las Vegas-based Bally Gaming and EPR Properties, a Kansas City-based real estate trust, donated a total of $100,000 to New York Jobs Now, a coalition of labor and business groups pushing the casino amendment.

The donations came as an automated call Monday featuring Cuomo touting his support for the proposal hit all corners of the state. Cuomo first pushed the casino amendment as part of his 2012 State of the State address and negotiated agreements with the state's Native American tribes that were key to its passage.

Opponents of casinos, which include conservative think tanks and Catskill Mountainkeeper, have questioned their economic impact. Casinos, they say, amount to a regressive tax on the less-fortunate and gambling addicts. They questioned the ballot's rosy language, which touted casinos as a way to boost economic development and provide tax revenue to local governments.

"We had hoped that the vote on whether to have casinos in New York State would have been fair — but everything about the process seemed rigged," the Committee Against Proposition 1 said in a statement. "Nevertheless, we accept that the people of New York have spoken; our focus will now be on how to mitigate the impact of casinos in the Catskills."

After the first seven years, the attention for casinos will turn to the New York City area. Yonkers Raceway and Aqueduct in Queens, N.Y., run the two largest racinos in the world, and they ultimately want to bid to become full-scale casinos.

Yet questions remain on whether the Northeast already is saturated with gaming options: It has 55 casinos. Atlantic City in particular has suffered from a steep decline in revenue in recent years as gambling proliferated through Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New York and Pennsylvania.

A report Sept. 19 from Moody's Investment Services warned states to not rely heavily on gambling growth. It pointed out how casino revenue in Atlantic City has dropped 44% since 2006.